Probability of Success

History

2009-10: Russo joined the U.S. NTDP program, splitting his time between the U-17 national team and the NTDP team in the USHL. In 52 games for the U-17 team, Russo scored 7 goals and added 24 assists for 31 points to go along with 58 minutes in penalties. In 34 USHL games, he scored 3 goals and added 17 assists for 20 points. Russo played for the USA’s gold medal team at the 2010 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, scoring 3 goals and adding 2 assists for 5 points in 6 games.

2010-11: Russo played for the U.S. NTDP squad competing in the USHL, where he picked up 6 assists in 24 games. Russo captained the USA’s gold medal squad at the 2011 U-18 World Junior Championship, scoring 1 goal and adding 7 assists for 8 points in 6 games. Russo has committed to the University of Notre Dame for the 2011-12 season. Russo was chosen in the sixth round, 132nd overall, of the 2011 KHL Draft by Locomotiv Yaroslavl.2008-09: Russo played for the Chicago Mission Tier 1 AAA club, scoring 5 goals and adding 17 assists for 22 points in 46 games.

2011-12: Russo stepped right into the lineup for Notre Dame as a freshman – skating in all 40 games for the Fighting Irish. Russo finished one point behind junior Sam Calabrese for the team lead in points amongst defensemen with 4 goals and 11 assists and was minus-seven with 14 penalty minutes. He scored all four of his goals on the power play. Notre Dame finished eighth in the CCHA and advanced to the league tournament quarterfinals against Michigan after sweeping a first round series with Ohio State.

2012-13: Russo skated in all 41 games for Notre Dame as a sophomore. He led Fighting Irish defensemen in scoring with 5 goals and 18 assists and was +6 with 40 penalty minutes. Notre Dame captured the CCHA tournament championship after finishing second to Miami in the regular season. The Fighting Irish fell to St. Cloud State in the NCAA Midwest Regional semifinals.

2013-14: Russo skated in 21 games for Notre Dame in his junior season at Notre Dame. He scored 4 goals with 11 assists and was +9 with 8 penalty minutes for the Fighting Irish before being declared academically ineligible in January. Notre Dame finished eighth in Hockey East in its first year in the conference. The Fighting Irish upset first-place Boston College in the conference tournament and received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament; falling to St. Cloud State, 4-3, in overtime in the NCAA West regional semifinals.

2014-15: Russo was the second-leading scorer for Notre Dame as a senior, trailing only forward Vince Hinostroza (Chicago) with 41 points. He scored 15 goals with 26 assists and was +13 with 20 penalty minutes in 40 games for the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame finished fifth in Hockey East; taking fourth-place Massachusetts-Lowell to three games in the Hockey East quarterfinals before falling 6-4 in the decisive third game and finishing 18-19-5. Russo was not signed by the Islanders, becoming an unrestricted free agent, and signed a two-year entry-level contract with Detroit in August 2015.

2015-16: Russo was the leading scorer amongst defensemen for Red Wings’ AHL affiliate Grand Rapids in his first pro season. He scored 5 goals with 34 assists and was +40 with 42 penalty minutes in 71 games. The Griffins finished fourth in the Central Division, reaching the playoffs for the fourth straight season.

Talent Analysis

Russo is a very solid puck mover from the back end and is not afraid to use his body. He is also a great leader and a very hard worker. A free agent signee by the Red Wings after playing out his NCAA eligibility, Russo is a playmaker from the back end while playing a strong defensive game.

Future

Russo skated for Detroit AHL affiliate Grand Rapids in 2015-16, leading the team's defensemen in scoring as a rookie. Russo will push for a roster spot with the Red Wings in training camp in 2016-17 and projects as a middle pairing defenseman who can contribute to the attack and on the power play.

Photo: While his team is in tough to make the AHL playoffs, San Antonio Rampage forward and Colorado Avalanche prospect Mikko Rantanen has been one of the top rookies in the AHL in 2015-16 (courtesy of Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

The American Hockey League’s Western Conference playoff picture is going to solidify itself over the next couple weeks.

Teams have less than a dozen games remaining and a handful of key races have developed as the AHL turns its attention to the final four weeks. Read more»

Robbie Russo doesn’t have a good explanation for his outlandish plus/minus figure.

Through 59 games, the Grand Rapids Griffins rookie defenseman and Detroit Red Wings prospect is a ludicrous +46. No one else in the 30-team AHL has cracked +38, while Russo is on track to become the first player to finish the season above +40 since Andrew Bodnarchuk finished +43 for the Manchester Monarchs during the 2013-14 season. Russo could track down and top Arturs Kulda’s +47 for the Chicago Wolves in 2009-10 as the top AHL plus/minus mark of the past 10 years. Read more»

Photo: Although set to graduate from prospect status in short order, Dylan Larkin’s recent struggles show that there is a long road to NHL stardom even for a prodigy (courtesy of Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Despite being in the playoffs for seemingly an eternity (not really, just closing in on three decades), the Detroit Red Wings have managed to find their fair share of high-end prospects in the middle to late parts of the first round and beyond.

Photo: The NHL trade deadline will have an effect on AHL clubs, as well, with the Colorado Avalanche sending prospect Colin Smith to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Smith, the third-leading scorer for the Rampage before the trade, will join the powerhouse Toronto Marlies (courtesy of Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

The Iowa Wild may be at the bottom of the AHL standings, but the team has been at the epicenter of several NHL headlines in February.

On Feb. 13th, the Minnesota Wild announced that Iowa Wild head coach John Torchetti would replace Mike Yeo as the head coach of the NHL franchise. Read more»